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Post by uso on Mar 14, 2006 23:12:50 GMT -5
Hey
Is anybody able to help me trace my Chinese Roots starting from Samoa?
In the late 1800's and early 1900's in Samoa, many Chinese labourers were sent there to work on the plantations. Amongst them was my great grandfather Ah-Ching Sen Sen of Guangzhou, Guandong, China. He married there an died there, but never spoke of his family back home in China.
No records are kept in Samoa and noone in the family really knows how to go about tracing back his origins in China.
He would have been born about 1890's because my grandmother (his daughter) was born in 1924, he would have passed away in 1960 in a place called Tanugamanono, on the island of Upolu in Samoa.
I was told that there was a reason why all the Chinese men in Samoa put an "Ah" in front of their names, but i can't remember why...my grandmothers maiden name was Ah-ching...
Can anyone help me trace this man's roots back to China, i would love to meet my extended family over there...
email me at usofrancis@hotmail.com
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Post by helen on Mar 15, 2006 2:04:21 GMT -5
From what I can gather there men came from Siyip area - and they were working for the German Plantation owners. They had children with the Samoan women, but a government ruling meant that all the Chinese men were deported back to China, and no one know where they ended up after that.
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Post by helen on Mar 15, 2006 2:06:44 GMT -5
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Post by helen on Mar 15, 2006 2:12:28 GMT -5
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Post by twoupman on Mar 15, 2006 11:37:18 GMT -5
USO,
Of late there has been several enquiries about the Chinese in Samoa from their descendants. In the majority of cases, there is very little information to build on. Since your ggf died in Tanugamanono, on the island of Upolu in Samoa, would it be correct to say he is buried there? If so, do you know if his tombstone contains Chinese script? If it does, some of your problems may be solved. The first thing to do is to get a photo of his tombstone and we will try to figure out the information it may contain.
The name "Ah Ching Sen Sen" is quite interesting. The "Ah" does not have any real signifance other than to make it easier to pronounce a following monosyllabic word. The "Ching" appears to be a surname. The "Sen Sen" can mean "mister"; this is just a guess. If this assumption is correct, then in English it would be translated as "Mr. Ching".
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